How to prevent death by dehydration with your potted plants

I’m going to wear my “Captain Obvious” hat for this post–at least for the first 3 items.

First of all, keep those pots  containing plants in the shade. For example, under your patio cover, a big shade tree or on the north side of your home. Even then you may have to water the pot/plant more than once a day in a desert-like garden. It takes almost no time at all for hot and dry direct sunshine to suck all the water out of a plant. And if it windy, the dehydration happens even faster. At that point, the plant wilts and  it is highly unlikely that even generously watering the plant will bring it back.  It is doomed to death by dehydration.

Second: do not plant in metal containers.  A few years back many gardening magazines were touting shiny metal pails as suitable for plants. Some still do, but it is better not to do that in the desert or other hot, dry climate.The metal container heats up fast–even if it is not in direct sunlight–and “cooks” the roots of the plant. It is guaranteed to be another plant death by dehydration.

And third: avoid those shallow bowls that you find filled with plants at gardening centers as instant-gardens-in-a-clay-pot.  Only smallish succulents will survive for any length of time in them. There simply is not enough soil for roots to grow vigorously and absorb sufficient water to survive.

Now for a couple of positive suggestions, including a controversial one

Consider double-potting your plants. Place a larger pot around an inner one and fill in the space between with wood mulch or dried moss. Yes, I know it can be expensive to buy two different size pots for one plant, but it is effective. The wood mulch or moss acts as insulation. If you pour a little water into the space between the pots to dampen the mulch it increases the cooling effect. Do not add too much water, however, as it may end up flooding the inner pot from the bottom up, thus drowning the plant!

Now on to polymers, those water-retaining gel crystals, that are usually used in flower pots to help both cut down on watering and retaining water in the soil for the plants’ use. No question that polymers are effective. Recently, however, we heard a gardener advocate using water-retaining polymers in flower beds and in the soil around trees in a desert garden. It sounded like a good idea.

But a little online research revealed a preliminary study which indicates that polymers may break down in our native soil into chemical components that may not be good for plants and people. So while polymers may be helpful for plants in pots, do not start spreading them around your garden.

Making sure you have a lot of organic material in the pot is a better way to go. Soil rich with organic material absorbs water well and supplies nutrients to plants.

For basic information about plants in pots on our Hot Gardens website, please go here.

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